Facebook to delete beheading videos shared by members

Facebook said it will delete beheading videos being shared at the leading social network as it re-evaluates its policy regarding whether such content is acceptable.

Wednesday’s move came as a reversal for Facebook, which had been responding to complaints by refusing to intervene since the clips didn’t violate the social network’s policy because they were being shared to condemn decapitations.

Facebook had equated sharing of the video at the social network to news organizations that broadcast graphic scenes to bring attention to and rally sentiment against violent acts.

“We will remove instances of these videos that are reported to us while we evaluate our policy and approach to this type of content,” Facebook said in an email response to an AFP inquiry.

The turn-about reportedly came after the California-based social network’s safety advisory board criticized the decision to leave the gruesome clips up at the website.

The controversy centered on two videos that appeared to have been made in Mexico, and weapons used to behead victims included a chain saw and a knife, according to online reports.